Russell Brand has been baptised, but the allegations of abuse towards women still need to be taken seriously

I don’t know if Russell Brand’s apparent conversion to Christianity followed by his baptism is genuine; none of us do, but I do believe that when men accused of any form of violence against women claim to have “found God” we need to exercise a lot of caution. 

The allegations against Russell Brand are serious. Four women have alleged he has raped, sexually assaulted, and emotionally abused them. One of these women was 16 at the time. The police are still investigating these accusations and since then more women have come forward with similar, credible accusations. Whilst it is not for us to speculate or investigate, we do have a responsibility to protect vulnerable people in our churches from potential sexual predators.

Whilst it is not for us to speculate or investigate, we do have a responsibility to protect vulnerable people in our churches from potential sexual predators.

It is very common for abusive men to claim they have changed when they have not, it’s a known tactic of abuse and it’s common for perpetrators to use religious conversion as “evidence” of their changed nature to win back trust and regain status. The timing then of Russell Brand’s conversion should at least give us cause for suspicion. For those Christians directly involved with Brand this must cause a quandary, how do we extend God’s grace, love, and mercy? How do we exercise our belief that God can redeem anybody whilst remaining “as wise as serpents”? How do we ensure our churches and our faith are not being used by a master manipulator to ingratiate himself with the public and to avoid justice? How do we protect the vulnerable and respect alleged victims but at the same time offer redemption to the sinner?

I do believe that when it comes to whether we prioritise alleged victims or alleged perpetrators, Jesus always put the victim first, and that the Bible primarily tells us to do the same

I don’t know. I don’t have the answers, but I do believe that when it comes to whether we prioritise alleged victims or alleged perpetrators, Jesus always put the victim first, and that the Bible primarily tells us to do the same, to choose the weak over the powerful. This case is high profile, but day in and day out, churches face similar decisions when marriages break down due to domestic abuse. In my work supporting Christian women who have experienced domestic abuse, all too often I hear of the devastating impact on the victims of churches siding with their abusers.

In his book Why Does He Do That? Domestic Abuse specialist Lundy Bancroft says that abusive men can change, but that such transformation requires “deep work and a commitment to living amends for a lifetime.” It is not something that happens overnight. Bancroft also shares 13 signs that an abuser has changed. The first three of these are:

1. Fully admit his history of psychological, sexual and physical abuse. Denial, minimisation and blaming others must stop.

2. Unconditional acknowledgement that the abuse was wrong.

3. Acknowledgement that the abuse was a choice.

There are ten more, all around accepting the consequences of his actions, and working to make amends. *

We see God transform men who have done evil in the Bible: David, Zaccheus, Saul. In each one of those cases we see the sinner admit what they did wrong, repent and seek to put it right: Zaccheus paid back four times the amount he had stolen from people. I’m not sure we’ve seen that from Russell Brand.

Whilst the church cannot and should not insist that a man admit criminal charges against him that he vehemently denies, we can still be wary about who we choose to hold up in the spotlight and when. It is too soon to be parading Brand as an example of God’s redeeming power, we can quietly support a man’s faith journey without giving him public credibility and support. Did he really need to get baptised in the Thames, why not a small quiet church baptistry service? Does he really need to be hosting podcasts about it? If Brand is genuinely and humbly committed to walking with Jesus, then perhaps now is the time for him to step away from the limelight and quietly work out his own faith in fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12)

*https://www.btr.org/abusive-husband/